Child labor and the "hangover" of the COVID-19 crisis in Latin America

Abstract

In this short communication, we reflect on the problem of child labor, with a focus on Latin America and its possible negative consequences in the pandemic context. It is argued that in a scenario of possible austerity, without public policy action for social protection and the incorporation of child labor problem in the rhetoric and political agendas, there will probably be future problems of human capital in the region. In addition, we see that the causal effect of the child labor problem may depend on the context and manner of execution, but there are already some signs that the problem has worsened due to pandemic crisis. Lastly, governments are called upon to incorporate bottom-up policies to deal with child labor and achieve point 8.7 of the sustainable development goals.